Tile-press



5 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

G. A. STANBERY.

TILE PRESS.

No. 388,926, Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

Win/anew.

It PETERS. Phatn'Lflhoguphw. Washington. D. c.

(No Model.) G. A STANBERY. 5 Sheets-Sheet 2.

TILE PRESS No. 388,926. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

lfizvanfarf 207" ne n If PtYERs. Phqto-Lllllogmlzher, Wishbrgion. (L c (No Model.) 5 Sheets-Shet s.

G. A. STANBERY.

TILE PRESS.

No. 388,926, Patented Sept. 4; 1888;

5 Sheets-Shet 4.

(No Model.) 4

G. A. STANBERY.

TILE PRESS.. No. 388,926. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

Wiineams lnvgjzto 7" 8 W W M (No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 5. G. A. STANBERY.

TILE-PRESS.

No. 388,926. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

N. PETER$ Phowum ww, Wzshingmn. By C.

thvrriin STATES ATENT @rricn.

GEORGE A. STANBERY, OF ZANESVILLE, OHIO.

TILE-PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 388,926, dated September 4, 1888.

Application filed July 95), 1887. Serial No. 245.595. (No model.)

To (LZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE A. STANBERY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Zanesville, in the county of Muskingum and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tile-Presses; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

The press herein shown and described is designed more especially for compressing encaustic tiles; but it may also be employed in the manufacture of other kinds of earthenware without material departure, if any, from the structure herein shown and described.

In the presses heretofore used there were two plungcrs, the lower of which supported the earth or clay in the die and the upper plunger was brought down upon the lower one by means of a long threaded screw to do the pressing. This screw was operated by a lever which might be weighted, and, being controlled by hand, was run down as forcibly as possible and then up and down again, and this action was repeated several times until the air was expelled from the material by the blows thus delivered and the tile compressed to the desired thickness and density. When this result was accomplished, the top plunger was run up out of the way and the lower plunger forced up by foot-power-to expel the tile from the mold. Other forms of press than the one here described are known; but this press was the most commonly used of any within my knowledge, and may be said to illustrate the state of the art as practiced up to the time of my invention.

Several disadvantages attended the manu' facture of tiles by the old method or press, which it has been my purpose in this invention to remedy. In the first place, it required too much hard manual labor; secondly, it was too slow, and, as the pressing was done by hand, it was liable to be uneven and irregular; thirdly, it was difiicult to get the tile from the mold or die without its being buckled or warped. The repeated blows by which the pressing is effected are designed as well to expel the air from the clay; but as all the air cannot be expelled there is a natural tendency in the pressed material to expand when the pressure is relieved; hence in the old machines when thetile is in themold andheld from expansion laterally and the top plunger is raised there is relief upward which the tile is apt to seek and buckling follows. These and other difficulties and objections were encountered in the old machines, which it is my object to remedy and are remedied in this machine.

Referring to the drawings, Figure l is a per spective view of my improved pres showing it ready for operation. Figs. 2 and 3 are side elevationsshowingoppositcsides thereof. Fig. 4 is a vertical section, enlarged, of the table, lower plunger, and die,and the mechanism for raising and lowering the said plunger automatically. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the upper part of the machine, showing the mechanism for starting the press and for regulating the number of strokes of the upper plunger. Fig. 6 is a transverse section of the operatingshaft, line XX, Fig. 2, showing the cam thereon and the lever operated thereby, and seen to the left, Fig. 2, said lever being connected through the vertical rod shown in this view with the mechanism for automatically raising the lower plunger simultaneously with the upper one when the pressing is completed. Fig. 7 is a vertical transverse section of the cross -head on the line of the main shaft, showing the crank for operating the upper plunger. Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail of the mechanism (shown at the bottom of Fig. 1) for automatically operating the lower plunger. Figs. 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 are details of elements shown in Fig. 5, and more particularly referred to and described hereinafter. Fig.

14 is a cross section showing the guides in the cross-head.

In the drawings, A represents the base of the press. Upon this are supported the standard (6 at its rear and the two rod-shaped stand ards, a a, at the front. These standards may be secured to the base in any way that will give them strength and solidity.

B is a cross-head, formed in two sections, firmly bolted on the standards or posts aa by bolts 11, and provided with a bearing for one end of the shaft 0, while the other end is supported on the standard a. A fly band wheel, 0, is loosely mounted on the outer end of the shaft C and inside thereof is a clutch, c,

0 having hearings in the two sections, as there shown. I

Beneath the cross-head, and attached to the posts a a, are a pair of guides, E E, for the plunger D. (Shown in cross-section in 'Fig. 14.)

In the operation of the machine, as before stated with reference to the old machines, it is desirable to deliver or effect a succession of blows upon the material in the mold or die,

which impact and compress the material and at the same time expel the air therefrom. This action is here obtained from the shaft 0 through the crank d and the plunger D working in its guides. So far no adjustment has been provided for, and the means to regulate the thicle ness of the tile will be described further on. Now,it-is desirable to regulate and fix the number of blows delivered to the material, so that they may be determined automatically, as well as to employ positive mechanism instead of hand-labor in effectuating the blows. This is accomplished through the mechanism shown most clearly in Fig. 5and the group of details about it.

The main shaft is operated when the clutchmaterial used or other conditions not material.

to mention here. Thus I have attached to the cross -head B a hanger, F, having a vertical slot, f, and set-screw f at the upper end of the slot. Pivoted to this hanger is a bell-crank lever, G, having an adjustable weight, g, and a point, 9, above its pivot, on which the lever c rests when the clutch is in engagement. The lever is held by the bell-crank G until it is released by arm H, fixed pivotally on the hanger I, pendent centrally from the cross-head, and having a horizontal bolt, 13, in its lower portion, which the arm H is arranged to strike, and which, when struck and moved by said arm, will swing the bell-crank forward (see dotted line, Fig. 5) and release the clutch-lever, thereby stopping the driving Wheel. Above the arm H- and integral therewith is a segment, h, having a series of teeth, h, which.

segment and arm may be set to start at any desired notch or tooth in the series h, which will determine the number of strokes made by theupper plunger before it stops, each tooth representing one revolution of the shaft 0, and consequently one stroke. For minute adjustment of the arm H with reference to its stroke, a set-screw,- h", may be fixed in its end at the point of contact with the rod 41.

Obviously the action upon the clutch sought and accomplished by the mechanism here described may be widely varied and yet remain within the spirit and purpose of this part of my invention, the essential point being to antomatically determine and control the strokes of the upper plunger with respect to their number and the time of stopping the same.

The lower part of the press is shown in vertical section in Fig. 4. First we have a heavy cast bedpiece,M, (shown also in Fig. 1,) which has set centrally therein a hard-metal screwthreaded thimble, LL Within this thimble is an internally and externally screw-threaded sleeveor tube, N, which extends both above and below the thimble and casting M, and at its lower end has a band, a, with a lever, n, attached thereto, and a hand-lever, a, near its top. (Seen clearly in Figs. 1 and 3.)

Within the sleeve N is an exterhally-threaded sleeve, 0, having a hand-wheel, 0, at its lower extremity, by which said sleeve is raised or lowered. The head of the plunger L is spread to cover the upper end of the sleeve 0,. while the stem of the plunger extends down through the center thereof and some distance below. Three separate movements are ob tained by this construction.

First, to fix the thickness to which the tile 7 is to be compressed, the sleeve 0 of the lower plunger may be adj usted higher or lower according to the thickness wanted. It will be ob served that the lower plunger-head also serves as the bottom of the mold.

Secondly, the outer sleeve, N, is adjustable by means of handle M, which is designed for raising the lower plunger with its support 0 slightly after each stroke of the upper plunger, so as to feed thetilegradually to the upper plunger as the material is compressed by each successiveblow. This movementbysleeveNis by hand, and, as seen in Fig. 1, may be fixed within regular limits indicated by pins or postspp, which may be set in any one of the holes 1), and thus shorten or. lengthen the range of the lever. Upon the main bed M, and about the upper end of the lower plunger and its inclosing sleeves, is a short cylinder, Q, whichis screw-threaded exteriorly and has adjustable thereon another short cylinder, Q, having a hand-wheel, q, for operating it. Upon the latter cylinder is a table,R,whiclrin turn supports the'die S and a feed-plateflush withtheuppersurface ofthe die. This construction enables me to fix the depth of the mold, and consequently the quantity of material. it will hold. WVhen the last notch in segment h, Fig. 5, has been reached and the press isabout ICC to be stopped by the dropping of the clutchlever, it is understood that the operator will have carried the lever a around to its limit at the right of the base-plate and against the post p thereon. This movement of the sleeve N by means of lever a will also carry lever it around to the right, so that it will occupy the position shown in dotted lines, Fig. 1.

Here we approach the mechanism by which the lower plunger is automatically elevated to the level of the die and feed-plate simultaneously with each final upward movement of the upper plunger, and in such relation to said plunger that the tile is held firmly between the two plungers until after it leaves the die or mold.

It has been stated that the old machines were defective and unsatisfactory, for the reason that the tiles were liable to become injured by expanding upwardly and buckling while yet in the die after the upper plunger was withdrawn. This was a material and serious defect, which I have overcome by the 1118011 anism here described. Some expansion will in all cases occur, however perfectly the ma chine may operate; but by holding the tiles between the plungers and at the same time re moving them from the die the expansion occurs laterally or edgewise, and not upon the face, which can work no injury, and buckling or bending is absolutely prevented. I have therefore constructed my machine to automaticall y hold and raise the tile between the plunger-s with each final upward movement of the upper plunger, and thefurther mechanism by which this result is accomplished is as follows: Journalcd in the lower part of the base, Fig. 1, is a shaft, T, which at its center is shown as having an arm, 1*, which connects by a yoke, o, with trunnions c on a nut, 21, on a screw-threaded portion of the stem of the lower plunger. This thread is cutrevcrsely to the thread on the outsideof sleeve O,so that the nut '0 will remain stationary through the adjustments of sleeve 0 and said plunger. To the right on shaft T, Fig. 1, is a loose bellcrank, '20, which connects by a long rod, '20, with a lever, X, Fig. 5, pivoted at its opposite end upon the crosshead, and having a sheave, X, at its center, which is engaged by a cam, Y, Fig. 6, on the main shaft. This cam and the crank are so arranged on the main shaft that both will act to raise the respective plungers together and at the propertime. By the side of the bell-crank w on shaft T is fixed an arm, if, in the end of which is a springpresscd bolt, h. When the lever n is carried around to the extremity of its movement, it presses the spring-bolt through till it engages the arm of crank 10. The movement of this crank will then be imparted to arm v and shaft T, and the lower plunger raised to the desired height at the proper time, as before described. A handlcver, Z, is attached to one end of shaft T, and to avoid breakage resulting from possible misadjustmcnt ot' the parts a safety-spring, to", with a tighteningnut- 10 is )laeed on the u wer extremit of rod-1.0.

It is desirable that shaft G should cease ro' eating as soon as the clutch c is released from the drive-wheel. To accomplish this result, I place a pulley, 0*, on the shaft which is engaged by a brake, c, pivoted on the standard a and weighted to get the desired effect.

It has been observed that after certain movements have been made and the desired press ing of the tile is obtained the lower and upper plungers rise together and hold thetile between them. \Nhen this occurs, the power is at the same instant shifted from the driveshaft, and then the friction-brake asserts itself and stops said shaft the instant the power is removed, so that there will be no further movement of the upper plunger and the tile remains between the two plungers. This friction-brake is relied on to prevent the rotation of the main shaft when the power is removed therefrom and is indispensable for this purpose. The weight on the brake lever should be sufficiently heavy to act promptly on the shaft. A brake, 10, Fig. 3, likewise is attached to the frame A, and engages a segment, 12, on shaft T to hold said shaft and its attachments in the position to which they are carried byplishing the objects of my invention; butit is clear that other devices or means, bearing no resemblance to these except in function,might be substituted and do the work as well. ldo not, therefore, consider my invention limited by the special appliances here shown and described, but regard it broad enough to cover other forms or combinations of mechanism the equivalents of these, and which have substantially similar functions, or accomplish the same or similar results however different in appearancev or arrangement. For example, the means of effecting the various movements and adjustments of the lower plunger alone or in conjunction with the upper plunger are susceptible of infinite variation, as any mechanicskilled in this art will readily see. The same is true of the mechanism embodied in the other parts of my machine, modifications or different forms of which are readily suggested.

The operation of the press will be understood from the foregoing specification, and need not be more ntrticularly or fully described.

Having thus dcscribed my lllVClltl0ll,Wllttil I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a tile'press, a main shaft having a plunger mounted eceentrically thereon, and a shifting device to throw the plunger in and out ofoperation, said shifting device having a lever or arm to move it,in combination with an arm operated by the main shaft and constructed to release the said lever after two or i more revolutions of the shaft, substantially as set forth.

2. In a tilepress, a main shaft, a plunger mounted'on said shaft, a shifting device connected with said shaft to hold or release the same with reference to the driving-power, a projection on said shaft, and mechanism be tween said shaft and the shifting device consisting of a lever, a catch for the lever, and a moving arm to automatically move the shifting-deviee and to vary the number of strokes delivered by the plunger, substantially as set forth.

.3. In a press, a reciprocating plunger, a drive-shaman arm operated by the drive shaft and adjustable in respect thereto, a shiftinglever to stop themovement of the shaft, and a catch for the lever operated by sai .l' arm,substantially as set forth.

4. In a press, a main shaft havinga projection on its end, and anotched arm pivoted to be engaged by said projection, a clutch for the shaft having a lever, and a catch for the lever movable by said arm, substantially asset forth.

5. In a press, a main shaft having a drive- Whcel loosely mounted thereon anda clutch between said parts, incombination with a lever for the clutch, and an arm adjustable in respect to the shaft and engaged by a projection thereon, whereby the said part is moved to release the said lever from its catch after any predetermined number of revolutions of theshaft, substantially as set forth.

6. In a press, a main shaft having a lateral projection, an arm with notches engaged by said projection, said arm being adjustable to bring one or another of the notches into engagement with the projection, a reciprocating plunger, and alever and clutching device antomatically operated by the aforesaid arm,

wherebythe number of strokes delivered by the plunger is regulated, substantially as set forth.

7. In a press, a shaft having aplunger mounted to be reciprocated thereby, a bandwheel, a clutch to lock the shaft with the band-wheel, and a lever to operate the clutch, in combination with a pivoted and adjustable arm having notches engaged by the saidshaft through a projection thereon, and a rod operated by said arm to disengage the clutch-lever, substantially as set forth.

8. In a press, a main drive shaft, a reciproeating upper plunger, a shifting device to disengage the shaft from the driving power, and a brake for the shaft, whereby the movement of the plunger is summarily stopped, substantially as set forth.

9. In a press, the main shaft having a lateral projection, a fixed arm below the shaft, a pivoted arm on the fixed arm having notches engaging the projection in the shaft and adj ustable on the fixed arm to bring any one ofsai'd notchesintoinitial engagement,ashifting-lever for the main shaft, and a rod on the fixed arm for releasing said lever, substantially as set forth.

10. In a tile-press, a main shaft having a plunger mounted eccentrically thereon, a device to engage the shaft with the drivingpower, and a lever to operate said device, in combination with a pivoted piece engaged by a projection on the main shaft and constructed to bemoved forward step by step with each revolution of said shaft, and a rod and catch for the aforesaid lever operated by said pivoted piece, substantially as set forth.

11. In a press, a crank-shaft, a plunger attached to the shaft, and power-connections on the shaft, whereby a regular and constant reciprocating movement is imparted to the said plunger while the pressing is being done, in combination with a lower plunger, and a sleeve and lever for raising said lower plunger and gradually lifting the material in the-die asit is pressed by the-action of the upper plunger,

substantially as set forth.

12. In a press, an upper plunger, and a lower plunger vertically adjustable by means of a screwsleeve surrounding said plunger,

and a second sleeve outside saidscrew-sleeve with a handle to operate it,substantially as set forth.

13. In a press having two plungers set opposite each other, a lower plunger set within adjusting-sleeves by which the elevation of the plunger is regulated, and independent levers for adjusting said sleeves, substantially as set forth.

14. Ina press having opposite plungers, a

main bed, as M, a thimble, as L, and two adjustingsleeves, as N O, with a plunger inside the sleeves, substantially as set forth.

15. In a press, a main bed, as M, 'a short cylinder, as Q, and a second cylinder, as Q, adjustable vertically to change the depth of the mold, substantially as set forth.

16. Ina press, an adjustable sleeve, and a plunger having a head resting in said sleeve, in combination with a short cylinder about the mold adjustable to vary the depth of the mold, substantially as set forth.

17. In a press, a lower plunger surrounded by an adjusting-sleeve to raise or lower the plunger, in combination with an arm for raising the plunger independent of the sleeve,

said arm being operated from the drive-shaft, substantially as set forth. 7

18. In a press, a lower plunger and a rock shaft and arm for raising said plunger, said rock -shaft having a lever for operating it brought into engagement by a projection on a sleeve surrounding the lower plunger, all in l combination, substantially as set forth.

1.9. In a press, a lower plunger surrounded by a sleeve having a lever, a shaft and arm to raise the plunger, and a second arm on the shaft to make connection with the mechanism, extending to the drive-shaft, all in combination, substantially as set forth.

20. In a press, aroek-shaft to raise thelower plunger provided with a fixed arm and a pivoted lever, a lever on a sleeve about the plunger to move the fixed arm and pivoted lever into engagement, and a rod connecting the pivoted lever with the driveshaft, all in combination, substantially as set forth.

21. In a press, a rod connected with an eccentric on the main shaft and a rock-shaft operated by said rod, in combination with a sleeve for adjusting the lower plunger and a lever on said sleeve to bring the rock-shaft into rigid engagement with the rod extending to the main shaft, all in combination, substantiall y as set forth.

22. In a press, a rock-shaft having a rigid arm pivotally connected with the lower plunger, a bellcrank on the end of the shaft, an arm on the shaft to engage the bellerank, a screw-sleeve around the said plunger, and a lever on said sleeve to bring the bell crank into engagement with the arm at its side, all in combination, substantially as set forth.

23. In a press, a reciprocating plunger provided with mechanism for varying the number of blows, in combination with a lower plunger and an independent lever and sleeve for raising said plunger while the upper plun ger is at work, substantially as set forth.

24. In a press, an upper plunger eccentrically connected with the main shaft and a lever and operated from said shaft and controlling a clutch thereon, said arm constructed to vary the number of blows to he delivered by the said plunger, in combination with a lower plunger and a hand-lever to raise the same, all in combination, substantially as set forth.

25. In a press, a main shaft and an adjustabledevice connected therewith and constructed to regulate the number of successive revoluiions of said shaft, a lever operated by said device, said lever controlling a clutch on the shaft, in combination with a lower plunger raised by a lever independent ofthe main shaft, substantially as set forth.

26. In a press, a main shaft and a plunger thereon, and an arm controlled by said shaft having notches whereby the number of successive blows of the plunger are varied, a clutch engaging the shaft with the drivepower, and a lever to operate the clutch, in combination with a lower plunger having a screw-sleeve to raise it while the upper plunger is atwork, substantially as set forth.

27. In a press, an upper plunger, an ad} ustable arm operated by the main shaft, and a lever and clutch operated by said arm,whereby the plunger is stopped at a predetermined point after one or more blows of the plunger, in combination with a rock-shaft connected with the lower plunger and operated from the main shaft to raise the lower plunger when the upper plungerstops, substantially as set forth.

28. In a press, a reciprocating upper plunger and a shaft-controlling mechanism whereby said plunger is stopped after one or more revolutions of the shaft, said mechanism consisting, essentially,of a notched arm engaging with said shaft, and a lever and clutch operated thereby, a lower plunger having a sleeve and lever to raise it, and a rock-shaft for raising the lower plunger with the last upward movement of the upper plunger, substantially as set forth.

29. In a press, a reciprocating upper plunger and a lower plunger automatically raised with the last upward movement of the upper plunger, in combination with a brake on the main shaft, substantially as set forth.

30. In a press, a main shaft, a reciprocat ing upper plunger, and a brake for said shaft to suddenly stop the same, in combination with a lower plunger connected with a rockshaft to raise it, and a brake for said rock shaft, substantially as set forth.

31. In a press, a lower plunger having a screw-sleeve for raising and loweringit, a bandle on said sleeve, and an adjustable stop for said handle. whereby said sleeve may be fixed to start in its rotations from any desired point, substantially as set forth.

32-. In a press, a reciprocating upper plun- 10o ger, in combination with a lower plunger provided with a lever and sleeve for gradually raising the lower plunger while the upper plunger is at rest, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereofI hereunto set my hand.

GEORGE A. STANBERY.

YVitnesses:

HENRY R. STANBERY, G130. KREAGER. 

